AN: I apologize profusely for the delay. That was one of the most stress filled Christmases I've had and then we had a family emergency and I've not had as much time as I'd wanted to write. Then I wanted to make sure what I was posting was worth it for y'all who are still reading. I hope what I've come up with is good enough.
Thank you to all who have read, followed, favorited, and/or reviewed. It means the world to me. You all rock my socks off. Special thanks Imhereforthestory for making me want to write more (I'm sorry your present is late, but hope it's acceptable).Special thanks to klewald for your enthusiasm! I love it! And Special thanks to Annie Mous for making ME laugh! I really needed a smile when I got your review. Thank you.
Not beta'd.
Chapter 12
"You have a Batmobile!" The excitement practically oozed out of her.
He was glad.
Loved it.
He grabbed her wrists to avoid future bruising from this particular excitement and spun her back around, pulling her back flush against his chest and cradling her arms in his.
"Not—uh...It's not a Batmobile per se... More...it's more of a pastiche of all of the Batmobiles. Kind of my own little Frankenstein of a Batmobile. It's my Castlemobile. I commissioned it back in 2007. I've always been a fan of the bat and the timing just kind of worked out. I'd made enough money to buy whatever I wanted, I'd started to hit my slump with Derrick Storm. I knew he was on his way out and to cheer myself up I..."
"Made yourself the hero." She turned in his arms and brought her hands up to cradle his face. You are So. Much. Better than Batman..." Kissed him smartly on the mouth. Jaw. Nose. "You're my own personal hero."
It was his turn to blush ferociously.
"So do I get to drive this thing or what?" This woman was just too much.
"Not yet, you don't." He said it with a teasing smile. Took her by the elbow and opened the passenger side door. "M'lady, your carriage awaits." He stood arm extended to her should she choose to accept his help. Not that she needed it.
She couldn't resist him. One last kiss and she took the hand he held out to assist her into the monstrosity of mechanical genius.
It was smoother than the jarring bumpy ride than she'd expected.
"Wow Castle. This is impressive."
He glanced over at her as he maneuvered the vehicle onto the road that led into the village. She was chewing on her lip. Barely containing her excitement. It was cute.
"Impressive?" He was going to fish for compliments. Details. What did she like about it? Could she recognize elements from the different Batmobiles? Could she guess what the little red button on the dash did?
Her gloved hand traced a finger along the dash in front of her. Down the side of the steering wheel, along his fingers, hand, arm and up to his shoulder, squeezing lightly before landing back in her lap.
"What is this, a modified Hummer HX?"
"Mmm." he agreed. The lady knew her cars. Even if it was just a concept car that hadn't actually made it into production.
"So I'm guessing you wanted it to be taller than the Nolan version of the Batmobile, but just as rugged as the Tumbler." He could hear the teasing in her voice.
"Hey, it only makes sense that my car would have to be ruggedly handsome too."
She didn't comment on that, but he could see the smile tugging at her lips. He desperately wanted to do something about that, but now was not the time to pull over for a pit stop. They needed to get to the Karaoke for Kids event. Instead he opted to continue the ever present flirtatious foreplay. "It's the car right? Chicks dig the car."
"Ha!" Her laugh filled the air around him. "The car is very cool." Good. "But I think that in this case, it isn't necessary. Just icing on an already decadent cake." She licked her lips. God, he was going to die a thousand little deaths at the hand of Kate Beckett.
He could think of no better way to go. His hands gripped the wheel even tighter as he steered them through the streets to their final destination.
She really wasn't any help at all. "But what does this button do?"
He smiled and pulled up to a large but otherwise rather nondescript brick building. "Wanna see?" He waggled his eyebrows, lifted the little plastic cover, and removed his hand. "Go ahead, press it."
"Go ahead, press it."
Kate was impressed. This car, if it could even be classified as such, was a magnificent combination of the variations of the Batmobiles over time. The outer structure mostly resembled the Tumbler from the most recent of the Batman franchise. The two seat cockpit, for lack of a better term, sported red accented seats much like those of the 1960s television Batmobile. It featured aircraft like instrumentation and a passenger's side monitor which closely resembled Tim Burton's dreamt up version of the vehicle, and a custom gauge cluster, lit engine panels, and light up wheels much like the Schumacher incarnation.
The little red button was new.
She lifted her finger. Poised to press it, the adrenaline coursing through her veins. She pressed the button.
The brick wall in front of them was illuminated with a circle bearing a small castle in the middle of it.
"Is that a-"
"Rook. Yes. It's the Castle Signal." He grinned widely. The kind that made her melt inside.
"But you said you had this made in 2007?"
"I did. I know that the signal isn't signaled from the car, but I really wanted one and it also gave me the opportunity to install a button that looked really cool. I didn't want just another ectype of a Batmobile."
"But...that was before you started the Nikki Heat series..."
"Yes..." He quirked an eyebrow. "It is a castle. It was meant to be."
Hm. "I guess it was." She took his hand in hers. Manipulated his glove covered fingers. Squeezed. "I'm glad."
And she was glad.
He opened the door suddenly and turned back to her, "Come on, let's go inside. The children are waiting."
Oh for that sentence to be said in another time and place...Kate shook her head to clear it. What was he doing to her having her thinking of such things?
Maybe someday.
"I was thinking," Castle mused, causing her to turn to him. She looked like she'd just finished chatting it up with a woman who ran a shop in the village. He loved watching her out of her element. Doing the mingle and greet thing purely for his benefit. He knew most of the people here as his family had been holding this event for several years now. She was really doing quite well despite her initial reluctance upon seeing just how many people were here. He'd left her side almost immediately after entering to square away a few details with Alexis and the Tony the DJ. Her presence had been picked up on almost instantaneously as she was the new face.
He'd waited until Lucianne had stepped away before approaching her again. Her secretive smile surprised him. He quirked an eyebrow in question. Something was hidden behind her eyes. Something she was...proud of? What was that? He'd only left her alone for all of ten minutes at the most. Huh.
"You were thinking?" Kate teased. She must have been able to tell that he'd gotten distracted the moment she'd turned to him.
"Uh, I...I was thinking maybe you could sing one of these pieces that I have preselected. Also, I've marked a couple that we could do as a duet. If you want. Here." He thrust the piece of paper he was holding into her hand.
Kate caught the paper before it drifted to the floor after Castle's unceremonious shoving of it into her unready palm. She flattened it out and read over the list of songs he'd written down.
All I Want For Christmas is You
Santa Baby
I'll Be Home For Christmas
Mistletoe
Home
It Only Takes A Moment
Baby It's Cold Outside *Duet
Blue Christmas *Duet
Walking in a Winter Wonderland *Duet
White Christmas *Duet
Let It Snow *Duet
The Rainbow Connection
"Really Castle?" His face had a tentative look about it.
She couldn't laugh because she didn't want to hurt his feelings.
He was serious.
He wasn't very subtle.
He was soooo cute.
It was then that she realized that his inviting her to spend the holidays with his family had less to do with her putting her trust in him than it did him putting his trust in her. He had handed her his heart on a silver platter and trusted her not to drop it. But to love it. Take care of it.
His choices in songs for her to sing to him were very revealing. These songs showed her what she already knew about how he felt about her. What his face told her every time she gazed into the deep blue depths of his eyes. Sometimes the doubt still crept in, but he showed her how he felt every opportunity he got. What his face was showing her now as he waited in quiet anticipation for her to either agree to sing something for or with him, or to shoot him down entirely. Which was not an option.
"Justin Bieber?"
"I just figured it fit since you seemed to be fond of mistletoe lately." He softened. Smirked. No doubt reliving some of those moments.
She narrowed her eyes at him. "The Wiz? Hello Dolly?"
He smiled sheepishly. "The messages are really quite befitting..." he hedged. Befitting of what he wanted to say to her, wanted her to say to him.
"Ok, how do you explain The Rainbow Connection?"
"Hey, I told you that sometimes people sing random songs at this thing. Plus I think the lyrics are quite appropriate. They establish the a driving urge for something more in life..." He gave her a meaningful look. "Anyone could relate to that."
"Uh huh. Well I suppose since it is kind of a charity event, and I wouldn't want the benefactors to be disappointed..."
"And the kids, Kate. You don't want to disappoint the kids." He wrapped an arm around her shoulders as he steered her to the DJ's table.
Oh yeah. There was one big kid in particular that she didn't want to disappoint. "And since it's such a classic, I'll sing White Christmas with you."
"No solo?" he practically whined.
She crossed her arms and surveyed the crowd. "There are probably a lot of other people who will want a turn to sing Castle, no solo."
The National Anthem guy was back. Castle was right. It was a very moving performance. This man, who looked like he probably didn't spend very much time in public but obviously loved his country, sang his little heart out.
Kate didn't realize just how much it had touched her until she felt the wetness fall to the hand she had held over her heart as she stood in silence with the rest of the crowd.
A period of silence followed before the next act took the stage. Well known Christmas songs like Jingle Bell Rock, Adeste Fideles, Christmas Island, and many others were performed including several of the more popular songs Castle had picked out for her to sing: All I Want For Christmas is You, Santa Baby, I'll Be Home For Christmas. Some people encouraged the audience to sing along while others were more of a true performance.
Kate felt the joy of the crowd seep into her bones. She loved watching the faces of the children who gathered at the foot of the stage as they drank it all in. Castle had abandoned her again and she soon saw why. The music started even before the curtain rose on the next performer and Castle's rich baritone reached out from the back of the room as he sang "You're a Mean One Mr. Grinch."
Silly man. He had chosen to wear a costume that consisted of a red Santa suit (complete with hat) over green stockings that started from the knee down (thank goodness), fuzzy green hands that stuck out from the sleeves, and a mask that wasn't too scary for the kids, but also was a very good rendering of the character. If she hadn't recognized his voice she probably wouldn't have known it was him. It was that good.
He wove his way among the crowd and lingered among the children up front hamming it up before taking the stage to finish his song. Then Martha and Alexis took the stage and did a duet of "Baby It's Cold Outside" a` la the All I Want For Christmas movie.
Kate had expected Castle to come back to her side, but when Martha and Alexis were finished, she was surprised to see him take the stage again.
In another very familiar costume.
This one was made from gold pants, a sparkley brownish top with reddish collar and cuffs, and a wig of flames that sat atop his head. The music started and Kate felt the heat on her face before he even started singing.
I'm Mister Green Christmas
I'm Mister Sun
I'm Mister Heat Blister
I'm Mister Hundred and One
They call me Heat Miser,
What ever I touch
Starts to melt in my clutch
I'm too much!
Martha and Alexis marched back out onto the stage in similar costumes, sans wigs as they were already blessed with firey red hair.
He's Mister Green Christmas
He's Mister Sun
He's Mister Heat Blister
He's Mister Hundred and One
They call me Heat Miser,
What ever I touch
Starts to melt in my clutch
He's too much!
Thank you!
I never want to see a day
That's under sixty degrees
I'd rather have it eighty, Ninety, one hundred degrees!
(spoken) Oh, some like it hot, but I like it REALLY hot!
Kate swore he looked right at her as he said it. Heat. Not subtle at all.
Hee hee!
He's Mister Green Christmas
He's Mister Sun
Sing it!
He's Mister Heat Blister
He's Mister Hundred and One
They call me Heat Miser,
What ever I touch Starts to melt in my clutch
I'm too much!
Too Much!
Too much was right.
Too sweet.
Too caring.
Too...perfect for her.
Kate downed the punch she'd picked up at one of the beverage tables and started mentally preparing herself. She turned and headed for the Tony the DJ's table. She'd promised Castle that she would sing a song with him, but after that performance...suddenly it was the only thing that mattered.
That he know.
Castle stripped out of his Heat Miser costume and put his jeans and sweater back on. This would work for the last two songs he was singing. First, his duet of Marshmallow World with Alexis. It was another little tradition they shared.
A father daughter tradition.
And then, then his duet or White Christmas with Kate to round out the night. He was thrilled to the core that she'd actually agreed to sing something with him. He was perhaps a little disappointed that she wasn't going to sing a solo piece, but he loved her voice and if the only way he'd get to hear it tonight would be singing with him, he'd sing til' the cows came home.
"Dad!" His daughter rushed up to him as he smoothed the sweater out, her own looking unwrinkled. "We're up next and then Tony said that there's one last act before you and Kate can wrap things up."
"Who's this last mystery act?" he inquired.
"Just someone who wanted to sing something." She shrugged. "Tony said they approached him and said that they wanted to sing their parents' favorite song. Some kind of tribute or something I think." Her mouth was smiling, but her eyes were dancing. Not quite the same amount of joy. His daughter was picking up dirty tricks from Kate. Hm...
"Wha-"
Alexis grabbed his arm and pulled him towards the stage. "That's our music coming on, Dad, come on!"
And then they were singing and dancing like Dean Martin and Frank Sinatra and he didn't have time to dwell on the mystery performance.
It's a marshmallow world in the winter
When the snow comes to cover the ground
It's the time for play, it's a whipped cream day
I wait for it the whole year round.
Those are marshmallow clouds being friendly
In the arms of the evergreen trees
And the sun is red like this pumpkin head (He gave his daughter a noogie as he did every year)
It's shining so your nose won't freeze.
The world is your snowball, see how it grows
Thats how it goes whenever it snows
The world is your snowball just for a song
Get out and roll it along
It's a yum-yummy world made for sweethearts
Take a walk with your favorite girl (Castle grabbed Alexis' arm and they walked the length of the stage arm in arm)
It's a sugar date, what if spring is late
In winter it's a marshmallow world.
They took their bow and as usual, their performance was met with a lively applause. It only got better each year. He loved sharing this time with his daughter.
His daughter who was now shooing him off of the stage as the applause died down.
Right. Mystery performer.
He looked around for Kate. He felt a little bad for leaving her to her own devices for much of the evening, but he couldn't seem to locate her. The lights dimmed and murmuring quieted as a spotlight lit up the very center of the stage where a single microphone stand sat.
Huh. No microphone on it.
Then the music started. This wasn't any Christmas song he was familiar with. It sounded older, richer.
And then her smoky smooth alto curled around his ears and she emerged from behind the curtain clutching the mic in both hands, wearing a form fitting black dress (where had she gotten that dress?) and he had to remember to breathe.
I want to see your face in every kind of light
In fields of dawn and forests of the night
And when you stand before the candles on a cake
Oh, let me be the one to hear the silent wish you make
What are you doing the rest of your life?
North and South and East and West of your life
I have only one request of your life
That you spend it all with me
All the seasons and the times of your days
All the nickels and the dimes of your days
Let the reasons and the rhymes of your days
All begin and end with me
I want to see your face in every kind of light
In the fields of dawn and the forests of the night
And when you stand before the candles on a cake
Oh, let me be the one to hear the silent wish you make
Those tomorrows waiting deep in your eyes
In the world of love that you keep in your eyes
I'll awaken what's asleep in your eyes
It may take a kiss or two
Through all of my life
Summer, Winter, Spring, and Fall of my life
All I ever will recall of my life
Is all of my life with you
Did she just?
Was that?
No way.
AN: Well, yeah. Sorry. Didn't get my Christmas wish of 20 reviews (though it was close) so now I'm making it my New Year's wish. But again, please please don't feel pressured into it. I cherish reviews that are real, not solicited. I will try my best (barring extenuating circumstances) to update within a couple of days. Sorry again for the delay.
On a side note, if the OOC parts bother anyone—I did say in the description that this story is AU ish.